Gas refrigerating apparatus



March 21, 1933. l H. J. NACHMAN 1,902,715

GAS REFRIGERATING APPARATUS Filed March 9, 1931 Bumentor Patented Mar. 21, 1933 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE HAROLD J'. NACHM'AN, OF WASHINGTON, DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA, ASSIGNOR TO WASHINGTON GAS LIGHT COMPANY, OF WASHINGTON, DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA,

A CORPORATION GAS REFRIGERATING APPARATUS Application filed March 9, 1981. Serial No. 521,328.

When the burner is shut oif for the purpose I of defrosting this thermostatic valve closes and it becomes necessary to heat it in order to cause it to reopen. 'This is ordinarily done by applying a lighted taper or match to the housing of the thermostatic valve until an audible click indicates that the valve has opened, and then by applying the match or taper to the tip of the burner the gas can be ignited. The burner operates continuously until defrosting is required, then it becomes necessary to shut off the supply of gas by closing a ,main valve in the gas line in advance of the thermostatic valve until the defrosting is accomplished. Thus in order to put the apparatus in operation it is necessary to reopen the main valve and reheat the thermostatic valve, as above described, and relight the burner. In a number of gas refrigerators the main burner is located at the bottom of the refrigerator and in such position that it is necessary for a person tfl get on hands and knees in order to reach the burner, and this is difficult for an elderly or stout person. Many housewives cannot relight the burner, and a large number of service? calls for gas refrigerators are due to the necessity for relighting the burner which the owner finds it diflicult or'impossible to do. One ,object of my invention is to entirely eliminate this source of annoyance and enable a gas refrigerator or the like to be defrosted at will by closing a valve (which is readily accessible), and relighted when desired by merely re-opening such valve; so that the ordinary housekeeper can defrost the apparatus and again start the refrigerating cycle at will by simply closing and opening the valve. 50 g The gas burner heats a generator and flue is lighted or heated by applied flame. and so and another difliculty experienced with gas refrigerators is the occasional stoppage of the generator and flue by corrosion caused by condensation. This occurs if the generator and flue become cold. My invention prevents this by keeping the generator and flue warm enough to prevent condensation during the defrosting period. It also'obviates the disagreeable odors which ordinarily arise upon relighting the burner after the defrosting operation and when the parts are cold.

The invention is applicable to various forms of gas refrigerators and burners, I will describe it as applied to a gas refrigerator burner of the Bunsen type employing a thermostatic valve, and an understanding thereof will enable others familiar with the art to readily adopt and use the invention in connection with other burners.

In the accompanyin drawing:

Fig. 1 illustrates a urner such as is used in a gas refrigerator and equipped with my invention.

Fig. 2 is a left hand end view of Fig. 1.

Figs. 3 and 4 are detail sectional views of 75 the main valve on the line 3-4 Fig. 1, respectively showing the main valve in open position, and in defrosting position.

In the drawing 1 designates the as supply pipe connecting with the inlet 0 a main B0 'controllin valve 2 the outlet of which is connected hy any suitable connections, as 3, with a valve chamber of a thermostatic valve 4 whose stem 4a is connected to the bi-metallic disk 5a enclosed in a casing 5 and which I when heated is adapted to open the valve 4 and when cool to close said valve in the well known manner. The gas passing the valve 4a is conducted by a pipe 40 to the lower end of a burner 6, which is preferably of the well known Bunsen type, and the gas is ignited and burns at the end 6?; of the bumer tube 6a which is perforated for the dissemination of the gas. When the casing 5 long as the burner 6 is lighted, the heat is transmitted to the disk 5a and said disk 5a assumes a curve away from the burner 6 and holds the valve 4a open; but if the flame is extinguished purposely or accidentally the 1 disk 5a cools and will snap in the reverse direction and close the valve 4 and out off the supply of gas. As now employed ingas refrigerators when the main valve 2 is closed and the burner extinguished for defrosting, the valve 4a is closed; and it is necessary to heat the same, as above described, in all the present known apparatus after the defrosting operation before the burner can be relighted.

I have discovered that the thermostatic burner can be kept warm enough to be held open, and that the generator, indicated at 7, into which the hot gases are discharged from the burner 6 can be kept sufliciently warm to prevent condensation of vapor thereon by maintaining during the defrosting operation a very small flame at the tip 66 of the burner. And for this purpose I provide a bypass 2a in the casing of the main valve 2 around the valve member 203 therein (Figs. 3 and 4) and make a small radial duct 2?) in the member 2d at one side of the bore 20 therein so located that when the valve is fully closed and cuts ofi the passage of gas through the bore 20, a small amount of gas can pass through the duct 2?), bore 20, and bypass 2a back above the valve member 2d sufficient to maintain a very small flame at the tip 6?) of the burner, just suflicient to keep the thermostatic valve warm enough to remain open, and the flues warm enough to prevent condensation of vapors, without affecting the defrosting operation. The amount of gas which can pass through the bypass 2a can be regulated by an adjusting screw 2e tapped into the Wall of the valve casing in position to more or less close the bypass 2a. By properly adjusting this screw 26 just sufiicient gas will be permitted to pass through the main valve to the burner to maintain a very small flame at the tip 6b of the burner when the main valve is closed.

For convenience an indicating disk 8 may be attached to the front of the main valve casing adjacent the handle 2h of the valve; and

' when this handle is turned to the On position indicated in Fig. 2, the valve member 203 will be in position indicated in Fig. 3, and a full supply of gas admitted to the burner. If the handle be turned to Off position the supply of gas will be entirely cut off as in that position the duct 2?; will not communicate with the inlet but with the outlet of the bore and consequenly no gas can pass through the bypass 2a. When turned to defrosting position, indicated at D F in Fig. 2, the valve will be in the position shown in Fig. 4, so that a small amount of gas can pass through the duct 2?; and by-pass 2a to the burner. The amount of gas permitted to pass during the defrosting operation is so small that the flame will be only sufiicient to keep the thermostatic valve open and the duct 7 sufliciently warm to prevent. condensation therein, although not sufliciently warm to generate any refrigerating gases, or to prevent the defrosting operation. A gas refrigerator equipped with my invention can be defrosted at will and restored to operation merely by turning the gas valve, which can be readily done by anyone, cook or housekeeper. When it is desired to defrost the valve handle 2k is simply turned to Closed position and the defrosting takes place. When the defrosting is finished all'that is necessary to do is to return the handle 27!. to On position restoring full supply of gas and the refrigerating action is restored.

I claim:

1. In, gas refrigerating apparatus of the character specified having a generator, a burner, a manually operable main gas valve, means for conducting gas from the said valve to the burner, and a thermostatic cut-off valve interposed between the main valve and burner and adapted to be heated by the burner flame, said manually operable valve being open when the apparatus is normally operating and closed when it is desired to defrost the apparatus; a passage whereby when. the main valve is closed a small amount of gas is supplied to the burner to maintain a flame sufficient to keep the thermostatic valve open and the generator warm enough to prevent condensation of vapors therein.

2. In gas refrigerating apparatus of the character specified having a generator, a burner, a manually operable main gas valve, means for conducting gas from the main valve to the burner, and a thermostatic cutofi valve interposed between the main valve and burner and adapted to be heated by the burner flame, said manually operable valve being open when the apparatus is normally operating; a passage whereby. when the main valve is closed a small amount of gas is supplied to the burner to maintain a flame suflicient to keep the thermostatic valve open and the generator warm enough to prevent condensation of vapors therein, said passage being controlled by the main valve.

HAROLD J. NACHMAN. 

